Meghan Markle and her husband, Prince Harry, have not had the best relationship with the royal family since leaving royal life in January 2020. The couple settled in Montecito, California, and now live a very different life from the one in the UK, raising their two children, Lilibet and Archie.
It didn’t take long after the couple left UK soil before they decided to speak out. Their now-infamous Oprah interview, a Netflix series, and Harry’s book Spare became top news stories worldwide, and the Sussexes wasted no time accusing the royal family members of all sorts of things. The couple made several bombshell claims about what they had been through, and it’s easy to say that laid the foundation for what is left today regarding any form of contact between the two sides.
Meghan has only been back in the UK a few times since leaving royal life with Harry, but in May, there is a chance she will return. The visit could mean the beginning of a reconciliation between Harry and Meghan and Prince William and Kate Middleton. But it might be a challenging road ahead—as a royal expert now claims Meghan Markle has two demands, including a “groveling apology,” before ever making amends.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle had barely settled in the US before they appeared in the high-profile interview with Oprah Winfrey. It was only the beginning of an intense feud between the Sussexes and the royal family, and on the UK side, Prince William and Kate Middleton stood on the front lines.
Prince Harry & Meghan Markle
Harry and Meghan starred in their own Netflix mini-series, and later, following the release of Harry’s book Spare, the battle was on.
Prince William and Kate Middleton were featured in the book as Harry revealed many things about the royals. He gave his view of how his life as a “spare” within the royal sphere wasn’t at all pleasant.
Meanwhile, royal family members, including Prince William, decided not to speak out or comment on Harry’s outbursts about them. As of today, Prince William will talk to his brother when he gets a sincere apology, according to Ingrid Seward, editor-in-chief of Majesty Magazine.
“William would be upset that Harry yet again has chosen to make this visit to see his father a PR opportunity,” she told The Sun. “As far as William is concerned, he has absolutely no interest in speaking to Harry until Harry behaves like a gentleman and apologizes for the years of rudeness and slurs he has aimed at William and the Princess of Wales.”
“William must be privately furious thinking over all the years how he supported Harry, and at this one moment in his life when his 75-year-old father and wife of 13 years are both potentially seriously unwell, all Harry can think about is Harry and using it as an opportunity to announce his arrival and expect to see William.”
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle both attended Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral. The Duchess didn’t join her husband for King Charles’ coronation last year.
“Megan doesn’t feel guilty about Kate”
Still, Harry attended the coronation ceremony at Westminster Abbey but quickly left to fly back to the US. If reports were to be believed, the royals were thrilled that he left immediately.
King Charles is most likely the one who is most keen on seeing his two sons make amends, not only for his own sake but also for their future. Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle were seen as the future of the monarchy together with their husbands, but their time side-by-side didn’t end pretty at all.
So, is a reconciliation between the two couples even possible? According to royal expert Tom Quinn, it will never happen.
Speaking to the Mirror, Quinn said that Meghan felt that Kate didn’t support her enough during her time as a working royal. Meanwhile, the Duchess, he claims, also thought that the two should have bonded as they both had backgrounds as “outsiders,” married into the royal family.
“Megan doesn’t feel guilty about Kate, because she feels that Kate should’ve been the one person in the royal family to back her against every difficulty,” Tom Quinn told the Mirror. “Apart from anything else, Meghan knew Kate was an outsider, so she just couldn’t understand why Kate always towed the royal line rather than supporting her, Meghan, the other outsider.”
Harry and Meghan reached out to Kate Middleton to send their best wishes after her abdominal surgery. Meanwhile, it is said that the couple found out about Kate’s cancer through the news.
Some argue that Kate Middleton’s health could be a way of making amends between her and Meghan Markle. However, Quinn argues that their relationship is too “poisonous” to recover from.
“Kate’s cancer diagnosis has been a real shock for Meghan, but she can see no way to patch up the relationship simply because it has become so poisonous,” he added. “She also doesn’t want people saying that she is trying to make things up with Kate just because Kate is ill. Meghan still feels Kate was in the wrong and should apologize before they try to build bridges.”
Prince Harry & Meghan Markle to visit UK?
Prince Harry made a quick visit to the UK after his father, King Charles, received his cancer diagnosis. The two reportedly had a short meeting at Sandringham, but Prince William did not attend. The two brothers don’t speak to each other, and even though Harry allegedly offered to step in and help the royals with engagements during this challenging time, William would never agree to it.
Soon, the Sussexes could be back on UK soil, but it has nothing to do with the royal family. On May 8, the Invictus Games anniversary event will take place, and a service will be held at St. Paul’s Cathedral in London.
Prince Harry, who founded the Invictus Games, will attend. According to Express, Meghan is “listed as a guest” for the event.
Sources told the tabloid, “Both Harry and Meghan are listed as guests, and a speech has been scheduled, but there is still a question mark over whether Meghan will make an appearance. Her name has been penciled in as a TBC (to be confirmed).”
While Harry and Meghan’s and William and Kate’s relationships are at rock bottom, Tom Quinn claims that, surprisingly enough, the Prince and Princess of Wales are the ones who try to fix things.
In another interview with the Mirror, the royal expert claimed that Prince William and Kate Middleton “suggested” that Harry and Meghan Markle should bring their children with them in connection to the Invictus Games event.
“William and Kate have suggested that Meghan and Harry bring the children and that the two couples and their families try to make up, but the suggestion is not leading anywhere so far,” Quinn told the Mirror.
Meghan Markle fears for her children’s safety in the UK
While Meghan, as per Express, is currently listed as a guest, it appears that she has made a U-turn, which concerns her children.
A source told OK! Magazine that while Meghan had hopes of going to the UK with Harry in May, she doesn’t want to bring Archie and Lilibet with her because she fears for her children’s safety.
“It’s now got to the point where Meghan doesn’t want to come to the UK with the children. She just doesn’t feel safe. The situation is now about whether the family should attend with increased security or Harry should go it alone,” the source said.
Moreover, Harry reportedly begged his wife to reconsider, saying, “I don’t want to do this alone.”
“Harry doesn’t want to keep making solo trips to the UK,” the source continued. “He would prefer it if the entire family made regular visits to see his family and build bridges, but there is so much going on behind the scenes that it just isn’t possible at the moment. “
“Both Harry and Meghan were planning to come to the UK, but when the exact time and date of their appearance were made public, she started to rethink that idea,” the source said.
Meghan Markle has ‘two demands’ before reconciling with William & Kate
The children’s safety isn’t Meghan’s only concern about returning to the UK. The OK! Magazine source stated that the Duchess doesn’t want to “be thrown back into an anxiety-fueled visit to England where she feels like she’s not wanted.” At the same time, Harry is said to be very torn about how to support his wife while also simultaneously supporting Kate Middleton, his sister-in-law.
As mentioned, Prince William is furious at his brother for what could be described as “selling secrets” about the royal family. The fact that the Duke brought Kate Middleton into his book didn’t improve things, and William doesn’t want anything to do with his brother after ‘trowing the family under the bus.’
As one can imagine, the infected feud isn’t going to solve itself. Prince William demands an apology from Harry, and Harry also wants one from his brother.
Once again, royal expert Tom Quinn explains that two demands prevent reconciliation between the two couples—and Meghan Markle isn’t ready to accept things as they are.
“Harry would like a reconciliation, but supports his wife completely and until she feels that the royal family have been sufficiently nice to her – and grovelingly apologised for the past – it’s not going to happen,” Quinn told the Mirror, as per Daily Record.
Moreover, the royal expert claimed that Meghan is blocking Harry from engaging in peace talks.
“The suggestion is not leading anywhere”
“There has been a shift here since Kate’s illness Harry and Meghan do feel they need to extend an olive branch, but Meghan’s sense of grievance is still preventing anything really meaningful happening. Illness often brings warring family members together, and there have been hopes at Kensington Palace that Kate’s illness might do it,” the royal expert explained, adding there’s “no way” Meghan is bringing her children to the UK.
“William and Kate have suggested that Meghan and Harry bring the children and that the two couples and their families try to make up, but the suggestion is not leading anywhere so far,” Quinn added.
